JP2003345695A - File transfer method and apparatus, program and recording medium - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] The present invention can reduce the load on the file transmission side and improve the efficiency of file transfer when performing file transfer between a plurality of terminals using an asymmetric access line. It is intended to provide a simple file transfer method. SOLUTION: Identification information of a transferable file is registered including a file unique value, and meta information for specifying a file to be transferred and a terminal and / or a user of a transfer source and a transfer destination thereof is managed. Search for a terminal that holds the desired file on the communication network, and if the specified file exists on multiple terminals, divide the file into multiple data areas and use multiple terminals as transfer sources. In addition to the assignment, different data areas on the file are assigned to the respective transfer source terminals as transmission targets, and the transfer destination terminal receives and combines the data transmitted from the plurality of transfer source terminals, respectively. File transfer method to restore existing files.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a TCP (Transmis
sion Control Protocol) / IP (Internet Protocol)
The present invention relates to a file transfer method and apparatus used for transferring a file containing arbitrary data between a plurality of terminals connected to each other via a predetermined communication network using a program, and a program and a recording medium.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, when a file such as data or a program is transferred between a plurality of terminals connected via the Internet or the like, an FTP (File T) is conventionally used.
ransfer Protocol (File Transfer Protocol) or HTT
File transfer is controlled using P (Hyper Text Transfer Protocol).

In such a conventional file transfer protocol, the name of a file desired to be transferred (file name) and one terminal holding the file (transfer source)
And sends a transfer request. In response to this transfer request, if the file transfer is possible, the file is transferred to the transfer destination.

[0004]

When a conventional file transfer protocol is used, one file is completely transferred between one transfer source and one transfer destination. Until the transfer, the bandwidth of the line used by the transfer source is occupied. Particularly, when transferring a large file, there is a problem that a very large load is applied to the transfer source band.

Recently, an ADSL (Asymmetric Digital Subscriter) has been used as an access line to a communication network.
Asymmetric lines with different upstream and downstream bands, such as ber lines, are becoming widespread. In such an asymmetric line,
In many cases, the bandwidth of the downstream line is larger than that of the upstream line. For example, in the case of a terminal that frequently downloads data from the server, the amount of data received from the downstream line is larger than the amount of data transmitted to the upstream line. Can be used to efficiently transfer files.

However, when file transfer is performed on a one-to-one basis between terminals using asymmetric access lines, the upstream band available for transmission is small on the access line used by the terminal on the file transmission side. Therefore, in the access line used by the terminal on the file receiving side, the downstream band is not used more effectively than the upstream band, and the use efficiency of the access line deteriorates, so that efficient file transfer cannot be performed. .

[0007] The present invention provides a file transfer method capable of reducing the load on the file transmitting side and improving the efficiency of file transfer when performing file transfer between a plurality of terminals using an asymmetric access line. And an apparatus, and a program and a recording medium.

[0008]

A first aspect of the present invention is a file transfer method for transferring a file including arbitrary data between a plurality of terminals connected to each other via a predetermined communication network. A file transmission procedure for transmitting data of at least a part of a file from each terminal on the transmission side, a file reception procedure for receiving data of at least a part of a file transmitted from each terminal, and identification of a transferable file A file registration procedure for registering information; a file unique value calculation procedure for calculating a file unique value included in the identification information of the file based on the content of each file; a file to be transferred and its transfer source and transfer destination terminals and / or Or a meta-information management procedure for managing meta-information for identifying a user; A file search procedure for searching for a terminal holding a desired file on the terminal, and, when the specified file exists on a plurality of terminals, assigning the plurality of terminals as a transfer source; And a file combining procedure for receiving and combining data transmitted from a plurality of transfer source terminals to restore a desired file. It is characterized by having.

According to the first aspect, when a plurality of terminals hold a desired file, one file to be transferred is divided into a plurality of files, and data is transferred from a plurality of transfer source terminals to a transfer destination terminal. Information is transferred for each area, and the transfer destination terminal can restore a desired file by combining information of a plurality of data areas transferred from a plurality of transfer sources.

For this reason, the load on the transfer source line and terminal can be distributed. In addition, it is possible to reduce the required transfer time of the terminal on the receiving side. Furthermore, when each terminal uses an asymmetric access line, the bandwidth of the downlink on the receiving side can be used effectively. According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the file transfer method of the first aspect, a pseudo file creating procedure for creating a pseudo file including control information necessary for restoring an original file by combining data of a plurality of divided data areas. And writing the data received from each of the plurality of transfer source terminals to the pseudo file according to the control information included in the pseudo file, and completing the reception of all the data included in the desired file. And a data processing procedure for converting the data into a desired file.

According to the second aspect, by using the control information included in the pseudo file, the data of the plurality of divided data areas can be combined into one. Further, since all data in a plurality of data areas divided on one pseudo file can be handled, a load associated with file and data management can be reduced. According to a third aspect, in the file transfer method according to the first aspect, in order to manage a plurality of data areas on a desired file, user identification information of a transfer destination terminal to which each data area is assigned, and an index of each data area. Information, position information of the data area in a desired file, and size information of the data area.

In the third aspect, by using the user identification information of the transfer destination terminal, index information of each data area, position information of the data area in a desired file, and size information of the data area, The file and data area to be transferred can be specified.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the file transfer method of the second aspect, in the pseudo file creation procedure, file identification information of the file, information for managing each data area, and a transfer source of each data area are assigned. A pseudo file is created using the user identification information of the terminal, and the pseudo file includes a pseudo data area having the same file size as the desired file, file identification information of the desired file, and management of each data area. A control information area including information and user identification information on a transfer source of each data area is provided.

According to the fourth aspect, since the size of the desired file is the same as that of the pseudo data area, if the control information area is deleted after writing the same data as the desired file in the pseudo data area, the desired file can be easily obtained. Can create files. Also, by referring to the contents of the control information area,
The same data as the desired file can be written in the pseudo data area.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the file transfer method according to the fourth aspect, in the data processing procedure, for each data area,
The received data is written to the pseudo data area based on the index of the corresponding data area and the information of the control information area of the pseudo file. After the data writing to the entire pseudo data area is completed, the control information of the pseudo file is written. It is characterized in that an area is deleted.

In the present invention, a desired file transferred from a pseudo file can be restored. According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the file transfer method of the first aspect, a plurality of terminals assigned as transfer sources from a transfer destination terminal are provided.
The file identification information of the desired file, the area information representing the desired data area, and the user identification information of the transfer destination terminal are transferred, and the plurality of transfer source terminals transfer the specified data according to the information received from the transfer destination terminal. It is characterized by transmitting.

In the present invention, each transfer source terminal can specify data to be transmitted and a destination using information received from the transfer destination terminal. 8. A file transfer device for transferring a file including arbitrary data between a plurality of terminals connected to each other via a predetermined communication network, wherein at least a part of the data of the designated file is transmitted to the terminal. File transmitting means for transmitting from each terminal, file receiving means for receiving data of at least a part of a file transmitted from each terminal, file registering means for registering transferable file identification information, File unique value calculating means for calculating a file unique value included in the identification information of the file based on the content of each file, and meta information for specifying a file to be transferred and a terminal and / or a user of a transfer source and a transfer destination thereof Information management means for managing a file, and holding a desired file on the communication network. File search means for searching for a terminal, and when the specified file is present on a plurality of terminals, assigns the plurality of terminals as a transfer source; An area allocating unit that allocates a data area as a transmission target and a file synthesizing unit that receives and synthesizes data transmitted from a plurality of transfer source terminals and restores a desired file are provided.

The device according to claim 7 can realize the same operation as in claim 1. According to a eighth aspect of the present invention, in the file transfer device of the seventh aspect, a pseudo file creating means for creating a pseudo file including control information necessary for restoring an original file by combining data of each of the plurality of divided data areas. And writing the data received from each of the plurality of transfer source terminals to the pseudo file according to the control information included in the pseudo file, and completing the reception of all the data included in the desired file. Data processing means for converting the data into a desired file is further provided.

The device of claim 8 can realize the same operation as that of claim 2. According to a ninth aspect, in the file transfer apparatus according to the seventh aspect, in order to manage a plurality of data areas on a desired file, user identification information of a transfer destination terminal to which each data area is assigned, and an index of each data area. Information, position information of the data area in a desired file, and size information of the data area.

The device according to the ninth aspect can realize the same operation as the third aspect. According to a tenth aspect, in the file transfer device according to the eighth aspect, the pseudo file creating means includes:
A pseudo file is created using the file identification information of the corresponding file, the information for managing each data area, and the user identification information of the terminal assigned to the transfer source of each data area. And a control information area including file identification information of the desired file, information for managing each data area, and user identification information regarding a transfer source of each data area. I do.

The device according to the tenth aspect can realize the same operation as the fourth aspect. According to an eleventh aspect, in the file transfer device according to the tenth aspect, the data processing means simulates, for each data area, the received data based on an index of a corresponding data area and information of a control information area of the pseudo file. After the data is written in the data area and the data writing to the entire pseudo data area is completed, the control information area of the pseudo file is deleted.

The device of claim 11 can realize the same operation as that of claim 5. According to a twelfth aspect, in the file transfer device of the seventh aspect, the file identification information of the desired file, the area information indicating the desired data area, and the transfer destination Information transmitting means for transferring user identification information of a terminal; and transmission control means for transmitting data specified by a plurality of transfer source terminals according to information received from a transfer destination terminal. .

The device according to the twelfth aspect can realize the same operation as the sixth aspect. 14. A computer-executable program for transferring a file containing arbitrary data between a plurality of terminals connected to each other via a predetermined communication network, wherein at least a part of the designated file is data. File transmission procedure for transmitting a file from each terminal on the transmission side, a file reception procedure for receiving data of at least a part of a file transmitted from each terminal, and file registration for registering identification information of a transferable file A procedure, a file unique value calculating procedure for calculating a file unique value included in the identification information of the file based on the content of each file, and a file to be transferred and a terminal and / or a user at a transfer source and a transfer destination thereof are specified. A meta information management procedure for managing the meta information of the A file search procedure for searching for a terminal holding the file, and, when the specified file exists on a plurality of terminals, assigns the plurality of terminals as a transfer source, and An area allocation procedure for allocating different data areas on a file as transmission targets and a file synthesis procedure for receiving and synthesizing data transmitted from a plurality of transfer source terminals and restoring a desired file are provided. Features.

By executing the program of claim 13, the same operation as in claim 1 can be realized.
According to a fourteenth aspect of the present invention, in the program according to the thirteenth aspect, a pseudo file creating procedure for creating a pseudo file including control information necessary for restoring an original file by combining data of each of the plurality of divided data areas; The data received from each of the plurality of transfer source terminals is written into the pseudo file according to the control information included in the pseudo file, and after the reception of all data included in the desired file is completed, the pseudo file is stored in the desired file. And a data processing procedure for converting the data into a file.

By executing the program according to the fourteenth aspect, the same operation as the second aspect can be realized.
According to a fifteenth aspect of the present invention, in the program according to the thirteenth aspect, in order to manage a plurality of data areas on a desired file, user identification information of a transfer destination terminal to which each data area is allocated, and index information of each data area. , Using location information of the data area in a desired file and size information of the data area.

By executing the program of claim 15, the same operation as in claim 3 can be realized.
According to a sixteenth aspect of the present invention, in the program according to the fourteenth aspect, in the pseudo file creation procedure, file identification information of a corresponding file, information for managing each data area, and a user of a terminal assigned to a transfer source of each data area. A pseudo file is created using the identification information, and the pseudo file has a pseudo data area having the same file size as the desired file, file identification information of the desired file, information for managing each data area, and each data area. And a control information area including user identification information on the transfer source of the control information.

By executing the program of claim 16, the same operation as in claim 4 can be realized.
According to a seventeenth aspect, in the program according to the sixteenth aspect, in the data processing procedure, for each data area, the received data is stored in a pseudo data area based on an index of a corresponding data area and information of a control information area of the pseudo file. After the data writing to the entire pseudo data area is completed, the control information area of the pseudo file is deleted.

By executing the program of claim 17, the same operation as in claim 5 can be realized.
According to a eighteenth aspect of the present invention, in the program according to the thirteenth aspect, file identification information of a desired file, area information representing a desired data area, and a An information transmission procedure for transferring user identification information and a transmission control procedure for transmitting data designated by a plurality of transfer source terminals according to information received from a transfer destination terminal are further provided.

By executing the program according to claim 18, the same operation as in claim 6 can be realized.
A nineteenth aspect is a recording medium that records the program according to any one of the thirteenth to eighteenth aspects. By reading the program recorded on the recording medium of claim 19 and executing it on a predetermined computer,
The same operation as in claim 6 can be realized.

[0030]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS One embodiment of a file transfer method and apparatus, a program and a recording medium according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. This form corresponds to all the claims. FIG. 1 is a flowchart showing the processing procedure of the file transfer. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration example (1) of the file transfer system. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration example (2) of the file transfer system. FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of the file transfer device. FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a program and data used for file transfer. FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration example of data to be used. FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a transfer source and a transfer destination. FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram showing the state of the pseudo file during transfer.

In this embodiment, the file transmission means, the file reception means, the file registration means, the file unique value calculation means, the meta information management means, the file search means,
The area allocating unit and the file synthesizing unit include a file transmitting unit 32, a file receiving unit 31, a file registration unit 34, a file unique value calculation unit 35, and a meta information management unit 3,
8, file search unit 33, step S16, and pseudo file processing unit 37.

The pseudo file creating means and the data processing means according to claim 8 are each provided with a pseudo file creating section 36.
And the pseudo file processing unit 37. The information transmitting means and the transmission control means of claim 12 correspond to the file receiving unit 31 and the file transmitting unit 32, respectively. In this embodiment, it is assumed that a file is transferred in a system such as that shown in FIG. 2 or FIG.

In the example shown in FIG. 2, a portable telephone 12, a portable information terminal 13, and a plurality of personal computers (PC) 14
Are connected to each other via a communication network 11. As the communication network 11, for example, an IP network such as the Internet may be used. Here, the mobile phone 12, the mobile information terminal 13, and the personal computer 1
4 is collectively called a terminal. Each terminal and communication network 1
1 is connected via an access line such as a wireless line or ADSL.

Each terminal incorporates a computer for implementing the file transfer method of the present invention and a file transfer processing program 30 or dedicated hardware for realizing the functions thereof. In this embodiment, a file is transferred one-to-one between a plurality of terminals from a terminal that owns the file to a terminal that needs the file. However, when practicing the present invention, if there are a plurality of terminals owning the desired file, the file transfer from the plurality of terminals owning the desired file to the terminal requiring the file is performed in a plural-to-one manner. You can do it too.

In the example of FIG. 3, a portable information terminal 13, a plurality of personal computers 14 and a server 15 are connected via a communication network 11. In the system of FIG. 3, the server 15 can be used at the time of file transfer.

In the system shown in FIG. 3 as well, file transfer is performed on a one-to-one basis or on a multi-to-one basis between a plurality of terminals and from a terminal having the file to a terminal requiring the file. At the time of this file transfer, the server 15 can be used as an auxiliary to search for files owned by each terminal and to manage identification information of each terminal and transferable files.

Each of the terminals shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 has the elements shown in FIG. 4 as hardware of the file transfer device. That is, like a general computer, a file transfer device is a CPU (central processing unit) 21 and an internal storage unit 2.
2, external storage unit 23, network interface 2
4, a display unit 25 and an input unit 26. This file transfer device uses the file transfer processing program 30 and data shown in FIG. Of course, the file transfer processing program 30 can be replaced with dedicated hardware. The file transfer processing program 30 can be read from a recording medium such as a CD-ROM and executed, or can be transferred and read online.

When the server 15 is used as shown in FIG. 3, the file transfer processing program 3 shown in FIG.
The functions of 0 and a part of the data may be arranged on the server 15. In this example, the CPU 21 reads out the file transfer processing program 30 from the internal storage unit 22 and executes the same to execute the file transfer method of the present invention.

The internal storage unit 22 temporarily stores the file transfer processing program 30 and data shown in FIG. The internal storage unit 22 is a memory, and usually includes a RAM and a ROM. External storage unit 2
3 stores the file transfer processing program 30 and data shown in FIG. When the external storage unit 23 does not exist or its storage capacity is small, the necessary file transfer processing program 30 and part or all of the necessary data may be stored in the internal storage unit 22 at all times.

The network interface 24 is a communication device for connecting the file transfer device to the communication network 11. The display unit 25 is a display device such as a CRT display or a liquid crystal monitor.
1 displays information such as the result of the file transfer process performed by the user 1 and the input result of the input unit 26.

The input unit 26 is a device for inputting various information such as a mouse, a keyboard, and buttons. In the file transfer, the input unit 26 inputs a character string for a user to search for a desired file, and inputs user identification information,
Used for inputting file identification information and the like. As shown in FIG. 5, the file transfer processing program 30 includes a file receiving unit 31, a file transmitting unit 32, and a file searching unit 3.
3, file registration unit 34, file unique value calculation unit 35,
A pseudo file creation unit 36, a pseudo file processing unit 37, and a meta information management unit 38 are provided. The data to be used include the transferable file 41 and the pseudo file 4
2, a received file 43, user identification information 44, and file identification information 45 are provided.

When transferring a file, a file transfer request is transmitted from a terminal requiring the file (transfer destination terminal) to a terminal having the file in question (transfer source terminal). This file transfer request includes the file unique value of the desired file and control information as described later. In the transfer source terminal that has received the file transfer request, the file transmission unit 32 analyzes the file unique value and the control information included in the file transfer request, and transmits the data of the desired file to the transfer destination terminal. When a file transfer request in which the data area to be transmitted is specified by the control information is received, only the data area corresponding to the desired file is transmitted.

In the transfer destination terminal that has transmitted the file transfer request, the file receiving section 31 receives the data of the desired file transmitted from the transfer source terminal. When information of different data areas of one desired file is transmitted from a plurality of transfer source terminals at the same time, the file receiving unit 31 manages the information transmitted from each of the transfer source terminals by session management for each data area. And receive at the same time.

The file registration unit 34 registers the file identification information of the transferable file (the file held by the terminal) selected by the input from the input unit 26 in the external storage unit 23 or the like. This file identification information includes
It contains additional information such as a file unique value described later, a file storage location (such as an address), a file size, and a copyright.

When a folder indicating a storage area of a storage device or a drive indicating a storage device is selected by an input from the input unit 26, the file registration unit 34 deletes all the files stored in the specified location. Search for files and register file identification information for all of them. The file unique value calculator 35 calculates a file unique value of the specified file. This file-specific value is
It is used to identify whether a plurality of files are the same or not. For example, even if the file names are the same, the contents of the files are often different. When the data area of a file is divided into a plurality of parts and each data area is transferred from a plurality of independent transfer sources, the files of the plurality of transfer sources need to be completely identical. Therefore, it is checked whether or not the contents of a plurality of files are the same.

In this example, the file unique value calculator 35
Means MD5 or CRC (Cyclic Redundancy Chec)
Calculate the file unique value using k). However, if it is possible to identify whether the contents of the files are the same or not, the file unique value may be calculated using another method. MD5
Then, a hash value for input data is obtained using a hash function. This hash value can be used as a file unique value. The MD5 has a feature that the probability that hash values for different input data become the same is extremely low, and that input data cannot be obtained from output hash values. Similarly, when CRC is used, the probability that the CRC values for different input data become the same is extremely low.

The meta information management unit 38 stores information necessary for specifying a file and specifying a transfer destination and a transfer source of the file, such as the file identification information described above and the user identification information 44 which is identification information of the terminal itself. Is managed as meta information. The user identification information 44 includes information such as the address of the file transfer device, the user ID, the type of line connecting the communication network, and the band.

The file search unit 33 searches for a file transfer device on the communication network 11 that holds a desired file in accordance with the character string or condition input by the input unit 26. When a plurality of terminals on the communication network 11 hold a desired file, the plurality of terminals are assigned as transfer source terminals. Specifically, a desired file is divided into a plurality of data areas in consideration of the type and band of a line connected to the communication network 11 by each terminal, and each data area is assigned to each transfer source terminal.

Further, the file search unit 33 passes the file identification information of the desired file and the information of the divided data area of the desired file to the pseudo file creation unit 36. The information of the data area to be passed to the pseudo file creation unit 36 includes the user identification information of the terminal assigned as the transfer source and the index information of the data area (eg, area number).
And position information and size information of the data area in the desired file.

The pseudo file creator 36 creates a pseudo file including control information necessary for restoring a desired file based on a plurality of data transmitted from a plurality of transfer source terminals.

The pseudo file processing section 37 writes the received data of the desired file into the pseudo file according to the control information included in the generated pseudo file.
After writing all data of the desired file into the pseudo file, the pseudo file is converted into the desired file. The pseudo file is an intermediate file used to generate a desired file from data divided into a plurality of data areas, and includes a pseudo data area and a control information area as shown in FIG.

The pseudo data area of the pseudo file has the same size as the file size of the desired file. Received data (pseudo data) is written in this pseudo data area. The control information area of the pseudo file is created according to the user identification information. The file search unit 33 described above
After the search processing is completed, the file receiving unit 31 passes the file identification information of the desired file, the address of the transfer source terminal, and the data area information of the desired file assigned to the transfer source terminal.

In this case, the file receiving unit 31 sends, to a plurality of terminals assigned as transfer source terminals, user identification information of the terminal itself (transfer destination terminal), file identification information of a desired file, The information of the data area allocated to each transfer source terminal in the data area is transmitted to request data transfer. Further, when receiving the data of the divided data area which is a part of the desired file from the plurality of transfer source terminals, the file receiving section 31 passes the received data and the index information indicating the data area to the pseudo file processing section 37.

When receiving the received data and the index information representing the data area from the file receiving section 31, the pseudo file processing section 37 receives the index information and the control information recorded in the control information area on the created pseudo file. Then, the received data is written in the pseudo data area of the pseudo file. This process is performed independently for each divided data area.

When the received data is written in the entire pseudo data area on the pseudo file, the pseudo file processing section 37
Deletes the control information area on the pseudo file. Thereby, the pseudo file is converted into a desired file. This completes the file transfer. When each transfer source terminal receives a file transfer request from the transfer destination terminal,
The file transmitting unit 32 transmits the corresponding data of the desired file according to the information included in the file transfer request.

The file transfer request includes file identification information of a desired file desired by the transfer destination terminal, information on a data area allocated to the transfer source terminal, and user identification information of the transfer destination terminal. The aforementioned file registration unit 3
The information of the transferable file registered by 4 is stored in the external storage unit 23 or the internal storage unit 22 as information of the transferable file 41.

The file that has been transferred from the transfer destination terminal and converted from the pseudo file to the desired file is stored in the external storage unit 23 or the internal storage unit 22 as the received file 43. Next, a specific example of the pseudo file 42 to be used will be described with reference to FIG.
In this example, the pseudo file 42 includes a pseudo data area and a control information area. The pseudo data area is created with the same size as the file size of the desired file.

First, predetermined pseudo data is written in the pseudo data area. As the pseudo data, for example, data in which all data is filled with “0” may be used. The received data is sequentially written in this pseudo data area.
In the control information area, a footer in which general control information is described, and a plurality of control information in which detailed information on the division transfer is independently described for each divided data area are written.

In the pseudo file 42, the pseudo data area is arranged in front of the file, and the control information area is arranged behind it. Therefore, it is easy to delete the control information area located rearward from the pseudo file 42, and the burden on the CPU 21, the internal storage unit 22, and the external storage unit 23 when converting the pseudo file 42 into a desired file is reduced. Is done.

If control information is added as a header to each divided data area, control information and data areas of a plurality of data areas are arranged in a sandwich shape. It is necessary to create a temporary file having a size corresponding to the total area, and if the size of the desired file is very large, a heavy load is placed on the CPU 21, the internal storage unit 22, and the external storage unit 23.
The same applies to the case where the control information area is arranged before the pseudo data area.

Also, for example, a desired file can be created by creating an independent work file for each of the divided data and connecting all the work files after receiving all the divided data. However, in that case, it is necessary to manage multiple files, so C
A heavy load is applied to the PU 21, the internal storage unit 22, and the external storage unit 23.

When the pseudo file 42 is constructed as shown in FIG. 6, a file of a format determined to reproduce only data conforming to a predetermined file format from the beginning of the file, such as a sound or image file, is used. When the file is transferred, even if the data reception is not completely completed, the file can be played back incompletely.

As shown in FIG. 6, the information of the footer included in the control information area of the pseudo file 42 includes a pseudo data area size, a footer size, a unique value of a desired file corresponding to the pseudo file, and a desired It contains the file name of the file and additional information. The additional information includes a search word, which is a character string used when searching for the desired file, and meta information extracted during the search. At the end of the footer information, footer end information indicating that the footer ends is arranged.

Each piece of information included in the footer is described from the back of the pseudo file 42 to the front.
Thus, by always reading and analyzing the data after the pseudo file 42, information on a desired file can be quickly obtained. Next, a file transfer processing procedure in the above-described file transfer device will be described with reference to FIG. In the following description, a terminal desiring (requesting) file transfer is described as a transfer destination terminal D, and a transfer source terminal (one or more) holding a desired file is described as a transfer source terminal S. I do. The processing procedure shown in FIG. 1 is an operation of the transfer destination terminal D.

In step S 11, the transfer destination terminal D reads the file transfer processing program 30 into the CPU 21 and executes the program. The transfer destination terminal D connects to the communication network 11 using the network interface 24 and communicates with another terminal such as the transfer source terminal S. Communication. Step S12
Then, the file search unit 33 of the transfer destination terminal D communicates with another terminal via the communication network 11 and searches for a desired file on the communication network 11. The input unit 26 is used to input a character string and search conditions required for the search.

In this case, another terminal such as the transfer source terminal S that has received the search request receives the character string to be searched and the search conditions by using its own file search unit 33, Perform a search by referring to the file identification information. Then, each transfer source terminal S in which a file meeting the search condition is found returns its own user identification information 44 and the file identification information of the corresponding file to the transfer destination terminal D.

In step S13, the file search unit 33 of the transfer destination terminal D creates a file list using the file identification information and the user identification information returned from each transfer source terminal S as a search result, and displays the file list on the display unit 25. To be displayed.
In step S14, the desired file is selected from the file list according to the input from the user operating the transfer destination terminal D, that is, the information input from the input unit 26.

In step S15, the file search unit 33 of the transfer destination terminal D acquires the file unique value of the desired file based on the file identification information of the desired file selected in step S14, and obtains the file having the same file unique value. Is extracted from the file list. In step S16, the file search unit 33 of the transfer destination terminal D
From the user identification information of each terminal holding the file (desired file) extracted in step S15, the transfer source terminal S that is the transfer source of the desired file is determined.

When a plurality of transfer source terminals S are assigned as transfer sources of the desired file, the file search unit 33 of the transfer destination terminal D divides the desired file into a plurality of data areas, and Each of the data areas is assigned to each of the plurality of transfer source terminals S. Note that the size of the data area (ratio to the size of the entire desired file) allocated to each transfer source terminal S reflects, for example, the type of line or band that can be recognized from the user identification information of each transfer source terminal S. It is desirable to determine

In step S17, the file search unit 33 of the transfer destination terminal D creates footer information and control information (see FIG. 6) corresponding to the desired file according to the assignment determined in step S16, and creates them in a pseudo file. Hand over to section 36. In this case, the pseudo file creation unit 36 of the transfer destination terminal D creates a pseudo file 42 as shown in FIG. 6 using the received information, and notifies the file search unit 33 when the creation is completed.

In step S18, the file search unit 33 of the transfer destination terminal D checks the address and the user ID included in the user identification information of the transfer source terminal S assigned to the file reception unit 31 as the transfer source. The file unique value of the desired file and the control information of the data area allocated to the corresponding transfer source terminal S are passed. In this case, the file receiving unit 31 of the transfer destination terminal D connects the communication line to the transfer source terminal S using the address and the user ID of the transfer source terminal S received from the file search unit 33, and
The user identification information, the file unique value of the desired file, and the control information of the data area allocated to the corresponding source terminal S are notified to each source terminal S, and a data transfer is requested.

In response to this request, each transfer source terminal S that has received the request assigns the user identification information of the transfer destination terminal D included in the request, the file unique value of the desired file, and the file itself. Using the control information of the data area,
The data of the designated data area of the desired file, the control information, and the file unique value are transmitted to the transfer destination terminal D.
In step S19, the file receiving unit 3 of the transfer destination terminal D
1 receives data transmitted from each transfer source terminal S, and passes the received data, control information, and file unique value to the pseudo file processing unit 37.

In this case, the pseudo file processing section 37 specifies the corresponding pseudo file 42 from the file unique value received from the file receiving section 31 and receives the pseudo data in the pseudo data area inside the pseudo file 42 according to the control information. Rewrite data as needed. The contents of the pseudo file 42 during the file transfer are in a state as shown in FIG. 8, for example. In the example of FIG. 8, it is assumed that a desired file is divided into three data areas and transferred from three transfer source terminals S simultaneously. The data received from the three transfer source terminals S are respectively A1, A2,
A3 is written.

The processes in steps S18, S19 and S20 are repeatedly executed until the data reception of the desired file is completed. When there is no more data received from the file receiving unit 31, the pseudo file processing unit 37 of the transfer destination terminal D determines whether or not all the pseudo data areas of the corresponding pseudo file 42 have been rewritten by the received data, and rewrites all of them. If the data has been received, it is determined that the reception has been completed, and the process proceeds from step S20 to S21. If the pseudo data that has not been rewritten remains, the process returns from step S20 to S18. Request.

In step S21, the pseudo file processing unit 37 of the transfer destination terminal D deletes the control information area on the corresponding pseudo file 42. Thereby, the pseudo file 4
2 is converted to the desired file. Therefore, the transfer destination terminal D
For example, between the transfer destination file transfer processing device and the transfer source terminal S (transfer source file transfer processing device), FIG.
The information is transferred as shown in FIG.

As described above, since the transfer destination terminal D can simultaneously receive a part of the desired file from the plurality of transfer source terminals S, the file transfer can be completed in a short time. In addition, since the amount of data to be transmitted by each transfer source terminal S is reduced, the load of the transfer source terminal S associated with file transfer is reduced.

[0077]

As described above, according to the present invention, when a plurality of terminals on a network hold a desired file, the desired file is divided into a plurality of areas, and a plurality of transfer source terminals At the same time, the data of the desired file can be transferred.

Thus, the load of the transfer source can be distributed, and the transfer time of the transfer destination can be reduced. In addition, when an asymmetric access line having a different upstream band and downstream band is used, the available band can be used efficiently, so that efficient file transfer is realized.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a flowchart illustrating a processing procedure of a file transfer.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example (1) of a file transfer system.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example (2) of a file transfer system.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configuration example of a file transfer device.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of a program and data used for file transfer.

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration example of data to be used.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of a transfer source and a transfer destination.

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram showing a state of a pseudo file during transfer.

[Explanation of symbols]

11 Communication network 12 mobile phone 13 Mobile information terminals 14 Personal computer 15 Server 21 CPU 22 Internal storage 23 External storage unit 24 Network Interface 25 Display 26 Input section 30 File transfer processing program 31 File receiving unit 32 File transmission unit 33 File Search Unit 34 File Registration Section 35 File Eigenvalue Calculator 36 Pseudo file creation unit 37 Pseudo file processing unit 38 Meta Information Management Department 41 Transferable files 42 pseudo files 43 Received file 44 User identification information 45 File identification information

Continuation of front page    (72) Inventor Junji Takeuchi             2-3-1 Otemachi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo Sun             Within the Telegraph and Telephone Corporation (72) Inventor Toru Sadakata             2-3-1 Otemachi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo Sun             Within the Telegraph and Telephone Corporation F term (reference) 5B082 CA18 EA04 HA05 HA09

Claims (19)

[Claims] 1. A file transfer method for transferring a file including arbitrary data between a plurality of terminals connected to each other via a predetermined communication network, comprising: A file transmission procedure for transmitting from each terminal of the above, a file reception procedure for receiving data of at least a part of a file transmitted from each terminal, a file registration procedure for registering identification information of a transferable file, A file unique value calculation procedure for calculating a file unique value included in the identification information of the file based on the content of each file; and meta information for specifying a file to be transferred and a terminal and / or a user at a transfer source and a transfer destination thereof Information management procedure for managing files, and storing desired files on the communication network. A file search procedure for searching for a terminal that has the file, and when the specified file exists on a plurality of terminals, assigns the plurality of terminals as a transfer source, and assigns a An area allocation procedure for allocating different data areas as transmission targets and a file synthesis procedure for receiving and synthesizing data transmitted from a plurality of transfer source terminals and restoring a desired file are provided. File transfer method. 2. A file transfer method according to claim 1, wherein a pseudo file including control information necessary for restoring an original file by combining data of each of the plurality of divided data areas is generated. And writing the data received from each of the plurality of transfer source terminals to the pseudo file in accordance with the control information included in the pseudo file, and completing the reception of all the data included in the desired file. A file processing method for converting the data into a desired file. 3. The file transfer method according to claim 1, wherein
To manage multiple data areas on the desired file,
User identification information of a transfer destination terminal to which each data area is assigned, index information of each data area, position information of the data area in a desired file, and size information of the data area are used. File transfer method. 4. The file transfer method according to claim 2, wherein, in the pseudo file creation procedure, file identification information of the file, information for managing each data area, and a terminal assigned to a transfer source of each data area. A pseudo file is created using the user identification information of the above. The pseudo file includes a pseudo data area having the same file size as the desired file, file identification information of the desired file, information for managing each data area, and And a control information area including user identification information on a transfer source of the data area. 5. The file transfer method according to claim 4, wherein in the data processing procedure, for each data area, received data is simulated based on an index of a corresponding data area and information of a control information area of the simulated file. A file transfer method, wherein the control information area of the pseudo file is deleted after writing in the data area and writing of data to the entire pseudo data area is completed. 6. The file transfer method according to claim 1, wherein the destination terminal assigns the file identification information of the desired file, the area information representing the desired data area, and the destination information to the plurality of terminals assigned as transfer sources. A file transfer method, wherein user identification information of a terminal is transferred, and the plurality of transfer source terminals transmit designated data according to information received from the transfer destination terminal. 7. A file transfer device for transferring a file including arbitrary data between a plurality of terminals connected to each other via a predetermined communication network, wherein at least a part of data of a designated file is transmitted to a transmission side. File transmitting means for transmitting from each terminal, file receiving means for receiving data of at least a part of a file transmitted from each terminal, file registering means for registering transferable file identification information, File unique value calculating means for calculating a file unique value included in the identification information of the file based on the contents of each file; meta information for specifying a file to be transferred and a terminal and / or a user at a transfer source and a transfer destination thereof Information management means for managing a file, and storing a desired file on the communication network. File search means for searching for a terminal having the file, and, when the specified file exists on a plurality of terminals, assigning the plurality of terminals as a transfer source, and An area allocating means for allocating different data areas as transmission targets, and a file synthesizing means for respectively receiving and synthesizing data transmitted from a plurality of transfer source terminals and restoring a desired file are provided. File transfer device. 8. The file transfer device according to claim 7, wherein a pseudo file generating means for generating a pseudo file including control information necessary for restoring an original file by combining data of each of the plurality of divided data areas. And writing the data received from each of the plurality of transfer source terminals to the pseudo file in accordance with the control information included in the pseudo file, and completing the reception of all the data included in the desired file. A file transfer device further comprising data processing means for converting the data into a desired file. 9. The file transfer device according to claim 7, wherein
To manage multiple data areas on the desired file,
User identification information of a transfer destination terminal to which each data area is assigned, index information of each data area, position information of the data area in a desired file, and size information of the data area are used. File transfer device. 10. The file transfer device according to claim 8, wherein the pseudo file creation unit is a terminal assigned to file identification information of the file, information for managing each data area, and a transfer source of each data area. A pseudo file is created using the user identification information of the above. The pseudo file includes a pseudo data area having the same file size as the desired file, file identification information of the desired file, information for managing each data area, and And a control information area including user identification information on a transfer source of the data area. 11. The file transfer device according to claim 10, wherein the data processing means simulates, for each data area, the received data based on an index of a corresponding data area and information of a control information area of the pseudo file. A file transfer device, wherein the control information area of the pseudo file is deleted after the writing to the data area and the data writing to the entire pseudo data area are completed. 12. The file transfer apparatus according to claim 7, wherein a file identification information of a desired file, area information indicating a desired data area, and a transfer destination Information transmitting means for transferring user identification information of a terminal; and transmission control means for transmitting data specified by a plurality of transfer source terminals according to information received from a transfer destination terminal. File transfer device. 13. A computer-executable program for transferring a file including arbitrary data between a plurality of terminals connected to each other via a predetermined communication network, the data being at least a part of a specified file. File transmission procedure for transmitting data from each terminal on the transmission side, a file reception procedure for receiving data of at least a part of a file transmitted from each terminal, and file registration for registering transferable file identification information. A procedure for calculating a file unique value included in the identification information of the file based on the content of each file; and for specifying a file to be transferred and a terminal and / or a user at a transfer source and a transfer destination thereof. Information management procedure for managing the meta information of the communication network; A file search procedure for searching for a terminal holding a desired file, and, when a specified file exists on a plurality of terminals, assigns the plurality of terminals as a transfer source and assigns the transfer source to each of the terminals. For this purpose, there are provided an area allocation procedure for allocating different data areas on a file as transmission targets, and a file synthesis procedure for receiving and synthesizing data transmitted from a plurality of transfer source terminals and restoring a desired file. A program characterized by that: 14. A program according to claim 13, wherein a pseudo file creation procedure for creating a pseudo file including control information necessary for restoring an original file by combining data of each of the plurality of divided data areas; The data received from each of the plurality of transfer source terminals is written into the pseudo file according to the control information included in the pseudo file, and after the reception of all data included in the desired file is completed, the pseudo file is stored in the desired file. A program further comprising a data processing procedure for converting to a file. 15. The program according to claim 13, wherein in order to manage a plurality of data areas on a desired file, user identification information of a transfer destination terminal to which each data area is allocated, and index information of each data area. A program using position information of the data area in a desired file and size information of the data area. 16. The program according to claim 14, wherein in the pseudo file creation procedure, file identification information of the file, information for managing each data area, and a user of a terminal assigned to a transfer source of each data area. A pseudo file is created using the identification information, and the pseudo file has a pseudo data area having the same file size as the desired file, file identification information of the desired file, information for managing each data area, and each data area. And a control information area including user identification information relating to the transfer source of the program. 17. The program according to claim 16, wherein, in the data processing procedure, for each data area, received data is stored in a pseudo data area based on an index of a corresponding data area and information of a control information area of the pseudo file. And deleting the control information area of the pseudo file after data writing to the entire pseudo data area is completed. 18. The program according to claim 13, wherein a plurality of terminals assigned as transfer sources from the transfer destination terminal are provided with file identification information of a desired file, area information indicating a desired data area, and information of the transfer destination terminal. A program, further comprising: an information transmission procedure for transferring user identification information; and a transmission control procedure for transmitting data specified by a plurality of transfer source terminals according to information received from a transfer destination terminal. . 19. A recording medium on which the program according to claim 13 is recorded.